AP
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is expected to sign a long-term contract extension soon, but Stafford says no one should expect it to break any records.

In fact, Stafford says he wants to be mindful that under the NFL’s salary cap, every dollar the Lions spend on him is a dollar they can’t spend on another player. And Stafford says he wants to play with a lot of good teammates.

“I want talent around me, frankly,” Stafford told the team’s website. “You see guys breaking records with how much they’re making and all that stuff, and honestly, you want fair market value, but I don’t really care about breaking records too much. I want to break records on the field. I want to win games and have as many good players around me as I possibly can.”

Seeing that Romo's contract HELPED Dallas' cap room, I guess this is a moot point.

Another thing to remember is that Stafford is one of the last 1st round QBs to land one of those monster rookie contracts that is no longer possible under today's rules.
I think he had 42 million guaranteed (and 78 million total) before he even took an NFL snap. I think Bradford even trumped that and then the new rules kicked in.

Cam Newton got 22 million, or about 60 million less than what he would have gotten before the rule changes. The old rules were nuts.

Seeing that Romo's contract HELPED Dallas' cap room, I guess this is a moot point.

Another thing to remember is that Stafford is one of the last 1st round QBs to land one of those monster rookie contracts that is no longer possible under today's rules.
I think he had 47 million guarnteed before he even took an NFL snap.

“I want talent around me, frankly,” Stafford told the team’s website. “You see guys breaking records with how much they’re making and all that stuff, and honestly, you want fair market value, but I don’t really care about breaking records too much. I want to break records on the field. I want to win games and have as many good players around me as I possibly can.”

The bolded part is the only thing Stafford said that really means anything.

It means his guaranteed money will be in the same range as Romo's. Flacco's, Brady's, etc. The years and total amount will vary based upon how the team wants him to receive that guaranteed money and its cap needs, but fair market value means he's looking at a guarantee of $50 million to $55 million.

The bolded part is the only thing Stafford said that really means anything.

It means his guaranteed money will be in the same range as Romo's. Flacco's, Brady's, etc. The years and total amount will vary based upon how the team wants him to receive that guaranteed money and its cap needs, but fair market value means he's looking at a guarantee of $50 million to $55 million.

Stafford is being disingenuous and very clever. He implies that he doesn't want to break records with his contract but His rookie contract will be fully earned which he would've never received were he drafted today. He's far ahead of RG III and Andrew Luck in compensation. Add to that his fair market value will be in the top ten because that's the market value for his talent.

Sounds good with the fans but no agent is going to let him take substantially less so "other talent" can be signed. Other talent will come through his restructuring, not through a pay cut. Nice try.

Stafford is being disingenuous and very clever. He implies that he doesn't want to break records with his contract but His rookie contract will be fully earned which he would've never received were he drafted today. He's far ahead of RG III and Andrew Luck in compensation. Add to that his fair market value will be in the top ten because that's the market value for his talent.

Sounds good with the fans but no agent is going to let him take substantially less so "other talent" can be signed. Other talent will come through his restructuring, not through a pay cut. Nice try.

I agree. It is easy to say you don't want to break records(for a contract) when no one was expecting you to break records in the first place.